Deuteronomy 5: 12-15
"13For
six days you shall labour and do all your work.14But
the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God…”
“Covenant Cares for Kids” is the mission statement of our church’s planned
approach to one local, one regional and one global project for mission
work. On Sunday, our Serve Team showed a
presentation with photos and videos of the recent trip to Haiti, and Rev. Jason
talked about the Tabernacle of Christ Methodist Church. This Methodist church has taken in the
orphans from a nearby home where the agency had to close due to lack of
funds. Covenant plans on making a trip
there in July and running Vacation Bible School, and other programming. Interested?
See Rev. Jason Burnham or Laura Jacobson for more details.
The candle wax cartoon. I wrote
about the cartoon of the guy asking for more wax because he was burning the
candle at both ends. With Sunday’s
sermon, I thought back to that time and remembered how I wore my “candle wax”
cartoon as a badge of honor. I was so
busy, that I needed extra wax- but I was proud of that. That meant I was important to my company, and
I worked even harder to keep moving up that ladder of success. As a young mother, I believed in that badge
of honor. Why- look at all that I
accomplished today! I kept a score card
of all the time and effort I put in, making my house spotless, my kids
well-dressed, my husband and marriage happy and bright. I forgot to take care of myself many times,
but everyone around me was content, cleaned and pressed, and well-fed. How good they looked was a reflection of
me-right? I was doing my job well-right?
Actually no.
I spent a lot of time
making sure that that reflection was bright, shiny and all about me. I worked very hard all the time to make sure
people knew it was me that was the reason for such accomplished and fortunate
family. Not only did I not rest on the
seventh day, but I did not give God credit for leading me to provide for my
family.
And I was tested for
that. When my kids became teenagers, I had to trust that what I modeled and how
I behaved gave them the strength to make good choices and live their own
lives. I found myself giving “free
advice” and holding out opinions- most of which was resented and went
unheeded. My relationships with both of
my young adults became strained, and then worse. Because it was all about me still. I had to have the last word, the critical
opinion, the best advice. After all, I
had raised them and I had done a damn good job.
Right? If only I had “let go, and
let God”. You know who was broken? Me,
if I really was honest with myself.
I had to come back to a
real understanding of what faith means, and what renewal can bring to an empty
life. I am working on that every day.
And now after this spiritual reminder of “rest”, I will work to find that day
to reflect on God.
Renewed Christian.
Last week’s challenge: Check in
with a current friend and with a lifelong friend. Take the pulse of your friend’s life, and
make sure to connect with “fierceness”.
Challenge for this week: Spend one day where you don’t do the work of the
ordinary. Spend this day on rest, but
also on the replenishment of your faith.
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